Have we had enough now?
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00:00For the Marvel Cinematic Universe to have become as successful as it is,
00:04the series couldn't just churn out consistent movies.
00:07During Phase 4, major changes were made to the franchise's status quo.
00:12Storylines from the Disney Plus shows have been integrated into the MCU films.
00:17With nearly 30 entries in the saga, it's starting to become more difficult
00:22to remember who everyone is.
00:24Sometimes you feel like you're watching an MCU feature for the sake of continuity,
00:28rather than because you actually want to.
00:30If you still enjoy Marvel, that's great.
00:34But if you feel like the movies don't give you the same thrill as before,
00:37the MCU may not be for you anymore.
00:40And so, with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with WhatCulture,
00:43here with 10 ways the MCU isn't for you anymore.
00:47Number 10. You need to watch everything.
00:51Recently, watching films in the MCU is starting to feel like a chore.
00:55Even though Captain Marvel received less than glowing reviews,
00:59people flocked to the cinema to see it.
01:01But Marvel fans weren't watching Captain Marvel because they wanted to.
01:05Because the film came out one month before Avengers Endgame,
01:09moviegoers felt like they wouldn't miss out on the overarching story
01:12if they didn't check it out.
01:14This has become such an issue, even the Marvel actors find the franchise confusing.
01:19Michael Douglas couldn't follow the script for Ant-Man and the Wasp
01:23upon his first reading because he didn't know the titular hero
01:26appeared in Captain America Civil War.
01:28As a result, the Oscar-winning actor had to watch the Captain America sequel
01:32to understand what had happened in between both Ant-Man films.
01:36This problem is snowballing since the Disney Plus shows,
01:39and the films are intersecting more and more.
01:42If you don't have Disney's streaming service or haven't watched WandaVision,
01:46you are going to have serious problems watching Doctor Strange
01:49in the Multiverse of Madness, for example,
01:51since the stories are fundamentally interwoven.
01:54Because of this, you can't help feeling like you are sometimes watching
01:58an MCU feature out of obligation rather than enjoyment.
02:01Number 9. You have to watch films outside of the MCU as well.
02:06Okay, watching 19 movies in a franchise to understand the 20th movie
02:11is quite an ordeal, but playing devil's advocate, it makes sense.
02:15Since each of these characters do exist in the same universe,
02:18it's understandable why their stories would be interlinked.
02:21But Marvel Studios might be asking a bit much when they expect us
02:25to watch movies that aren't even in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
02:29When Disney acquired the rights of all 20th Century Fox properties in 2019,
02:34Marvel Studios was allowed to incorporate certain characters into the MCU
02:39that were previously off-limits, like the X-Men and the Fantastic Four.
02:43And with the Marvel Netflix series being implemented into the MCU,
02:48Jessica Jones, the Punisher, and Luke Cage could very well appear
02:52besides the Avengers in the future.
02:54But as hard as it is to believe, there are some comic fans
02:58who aren't familiar with Marvel properties outside the MCU.
03:02Some viewers didn't have a clue who Kingpin was in Hawkeye,
03:06because they've never seen Daredevil.
03:08If you haven't watched all the Sony Spider-Man movies,
03:10you might have not recognised certain villains in No Way Home.
03:14If you haven't seen X-Men, Professor X's introduction in Doctor Strange
03:18in the Multiverse of Madness won't have had the same impact.
03:21As a result, some viewers may feel like they've had to
03:24weigh through tons of TV series and films
03:27just to understand every single detail in the franchise.
03:31Number 8. You don't understand why characters are important
03:35Since the MCU launched in 2008, the films were methodical
03:39at setting up characters that will play a bigger role in later movies.
03:43Nick Fury's appearance in Iron Man could have come across
03:46as a glorified cameo, but instead was the perfect way
03:49to demonstrate how Tony Stark was just one player in a much bigger universe.
03:54But recently, it feels like the MCU can't make one movie
03:58without shoving in another superhero or supervillain without explanation.
04:02If you haven't seen Venom, you were probably lost
04:05when Eddie Brock appeared in Spider-Man No Way Home.
04:08Unless you know the convoluted comic backstory of Thanos,
04:11you'll be left wondering why Eros was in Eternals.
04:14Although diehard fans might argue this point by saying
04:17you have to read the comics, that doesn't excuse the fact
04:20that these forced character dumps are a sign of bad storytelling.
04:24Although there's nothing wrong with setting up new characters
04:27for future projects, it becomes an issue when it compromises the story.
04:31If you're increasingly frustrated by how the MCU keeps introducing
04:35characters five years before explaining who they are,
04:39no one can blame you.
04:41Number seven, you feel like you missed something even if you haven't.
04:45Avengers Age of Ultron begins with Tony Stark battling Hydra
04:49despite quitting being a superhero two years prior.
04:53Kingpin is a free man in Hawkeye, even though he was imprisoned
04:57at the end of Daredevil.
04:59Now, there is no real explanation for these inconsistencies.
05:03Because the MCU is juggling a plethora of projects all at the same time,
05:07there's bound to be a couple of plot holes like this.
05:10But any time you notice such irregularities,
05:13you can't help but wonder if you missed something.
05:15Did the movies explain how Tony Stark can be Iron Man
05:18after his arc reactor was removed?
05:20Did you misremember or miss what happened to Kingpin?
05:23Sometimes you might feel like you need to watch a specific film
05:27or TV show because it might clear up a certain plot.
05:30Because Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness and What If
05:34both have a corrupted Sorcerer Supreme,
05:36a lot of people assume the stories are connected.
05:39Although this isn't true, you'll be wondering if you're missing something
05:42while watching the Doctor Strange sequel if you haven't seen What If.
05:46If you're second guessing what's happening while watching any movie,
05:50it stops you from fully enjoying it.
05:52Number six, some easter eggs are too niche.
05:56There's nothing wrong with fan service.
05:59If executed correctly, spotting easter eggs in a movie
06:02can be the most exciting part for diehard fans.
06:05In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,
06:08a throwaway scene confirmed the popular fan theory
06:11that all of Stan Lee's cameos are the same person.
06:14To comic fans, this was one of the most satisfying in-jokes in the franchise.
06:18Luckily, the scene is only five seconds long,
06:21so it's not too distracting for casual fans who didn't get the reference.
06:25However, easter eggs in the later MCU movies have become less subtle.
06:29The opening crawl of Eternals mentions the six singularities,
06:33with zero context, confusing everyone except the most dedicated fans.
06:38If you aren't familiar with the comics,
06:40you won't have a clue why a minotaur keeps popping up
06:43in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
06:45The MCU should continue to embrace easter eggs,
06:48but they don't need to shove them into scenes willy-nilly,
06:51to the point where they alienate casual viewers.
06:54Number five, you set your expectations too high.
06:58Throughout Phase 4, Marvel projects like WandaVision and Loki
07:02have added a lot of mystery to their storylines.
07:05By not giving away too many details in trailers and promotions,
07:09viewers speculated endlessly on what was going to happen next
07:12in installments like this.
07:14Although fan theories can be a lot of fun,
07:16some people become furious every time the MCU doesn't pan out like they expected.
07:21Even though Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
07:24incorporated some familiar faces into the MCU,
07:27some viewers were raging because the film didn't implement more.
07:30Now, fixing this problem is easy.
07:33If you don't want to be disappointed, dial down your expectations.
07:37But there are times where you can't help feeling let down.
07:40When Evan Peters' version of Quicksilver appeared in WandaVision,
07:44fans believed this was proof that the X-Men from the 20th Century Fox
07:48had officially joined the franchise.
07:50But two episodes later, this development was revealed to be a red herring.
07:54Even though this was an unexpected twist, viewers had every right to be angry,
07:59since the studio deliberately misled viewers for the sake of a gag.
08:03Number 4. The release between sequels is too far apart
08:08The average sequel comes out two or three years after its predecessor,
08:12but in the MCU, the gap between follow-ups seems to be getting wider and wider.
08:17Because Doctor Strange has appeared in at least one movie
08:20every year since Benedict Cumberbatch was cast in the role,
08:23it's easy to forget that the first Doctor Strange film debuted six years ago.
08:28If you haven't watched the movie since then, it's likely you forgot certain elements.
08:32When Baron Karl Mordo returned in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,
08:37casual viewers mightn't have remembered who he was,
08:40since he hasn't appeared in the franchise in over half a decade.
08:44Although Spider-Man No Way Home was released only two years after its predecessor,
08:49it was released almost a decade or two after the Sony Spider-Man movies.
08:53If you haven't seen The Amazing Spider-Man 1 or 2 since they were released,
08:57if at all, you're not going to enjoy No Way Home as much.
09:01Even if you've seen all the required movies to understand every potential follow-up,
09:06you might feel you need to watch them again to refresh your memory.
09:09Number 3. Plot points set up years ago are forgotten by casual viewers
09:15If you are deeply knowledgeable of the MCU lore,
09:18you can forget how inaccessible the series can be to newbies.
09:22Look at it this way. Imagine you're watching a brand new movie franchise.
09:26Now imagine the villain comes out of nowhere in the 19th entry and kills everyone.
09:32You are befuddled by this development since you feel like this antagonist wasn't built up enough.
09:37But your friends point out that this character appeared six years prior in a previous movie for three seconds.
09:43Not only that, this character has appeared for less than two minutes over the previous 19 movies.
09:49If that sounds confusing, that's how it felt for casual viewers when Thanos was introduced in Avengers Infinity War.
09:56Average viewers probably forgot about the Mad Titan's post-credit cameo in The Avengers
10:01or his 30-second scene in Guardians of the Galaxy by the time they watched Infinity War.
10:06Casual moviegoers aren't expected to remember every plot point,
10:10especially when they don't know when the payoff is coming.
10:13For all they know, a plot thread will be resolved in the next movie or in the next decade.
10:18And guess what? It's happening again right now.
10:21Since the MCU is obviously building up another endgame-level threat,
10:25this time through multiple universes of characters, the movies are sowing the seeds for this storyline.
10:32But if you aren't picking up on every easter egg and plot point, you're going to be left very confused.
10:38Number 2. Death is meaningless
10:41In the world of comics, death is only a mild inconvenience.
10:45Whether a superhero is blown up, decapitated or chopped or erased from existence,
10:51there's nothing stopping them from returning from the dead two issues later.
10:55Sadly, this issue applies to comic book adaptations as well.
10:59In Avengers Infinity War, Thanos wiped out half of all life in the universe,
11:04including half of the superheroes of Earth.
11:06But because we knew they would return the following year,
11:09this moment didn't have the same weight it would have had if their deaths were permanent.
11:13Sadly, this is but one example.
11:16Loki seemingly perished in Thor, Thor The Dark World and Avengers Infinity War,
11:22and yet he's still breathing.
11:24One character in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness
11:27will likely return despite the fact they died in the film for the fourth time.
11:32Number 1. The MCU can't match the hype of Avengers Endgame
11:37Because Avengers Endgame was built up for a decade,
11:40it felt like there was no conceivable way it could live up to the hype.
11:44But the final battle between Earth's mightiest heroes and Thanos didn't match expectations,
11:49it exceeded them.
11:51This showdown wasn't just cool or badass, it was a monumental feat in storytelling.
11:56Unfortunately, the MCU seems to be a victim of its own success.
12:01After stopping the most powerful villain in existence from wiping out the universe,
12:05where can you go from there?
12:07Now, that's not suggesting that Marvel installments in the future won't be epic.
12:11In fact, the seeds have already been sowed that the entire multiverse
12:15will be in jeopardy in future installments.
12:17But will such stories have the same impact as Avengers Endgame?
12:21Is it even possible?
12:23Although the Marvel Cinematic Universe is sure to have plenty of emotionally driven storylines,
12:28meme-creating quips and sensational battles, it won't hit us the same way.
12:33And that concludes our list.
12:35If you can think of any other examples, then do let us know in the comments below.
12:39And while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe and tap that notification bell.
12:43Also, head over to Twitter and follow us there,
12:46and I can be found across various social medias just by searching Ellie Littlechild.
12:50I've been Ellie with WhatCulture, I hope you have a magical day and I'll see you real soon.